Abstract
BackgroundIntegration of information streams into a unitary representation is an important task of our cognitive system. Within working memory, the medial temporal lobe (MTL) has been conceptually linked to the maintenance of bound representations. In a previous fMRI study, we have shown that the MTL is indeed more active during working-memory maintenance of spatial associations as compared to non-spatial associations or single items. There are two explanations for this result, the mere presence of the spatial component activates the MTL, or the MTL is recruited to bind associations between neurally non-overlapping representations.Methodology/Principal FindingsThe current fMRI study investigates this issue further by directly comparing intrinsic intra-item binding (object/colour), extrinsic intra-item binding (object/location), and inter-item binding (object/object). The three binding conditions resulted in differential activation of brain regions. Specifically, we show that the MTL is important for establishing extrinsic intra-item associations and inter-item associations, in line with the notion that binding of information processed in different brain regions depends on the MTL.Conclusions/SignificanceOur findings indicate that different forms of working-memory binding rely on specific neural structures. In addition, these results extend previous reports indicating that the MTL is implicated in working-memory maintenance, challenging the classic distinction between short-term and long-term memory systems.
Highlights
An important quality of human cognition is the ability to associate and integrate different aspects of an experience into one coherent episode
In a previous working-memory study, we showed that the medial temporal lobe (MTL) was more active in a condition that required the association of a number and its location on the screen as compared to associations formed between a number and its colour [9]
FMRI Data Whole brain analysis showed that a variety of regions commonly associated with working memory maintenance were active when all delay periods on correct trials of associative working memory were compared to the baseline, indicating that our set-up was suitable to assess the brain regions involved in working memory maintenance
Summary
An important quality of human cognition is the ability to associate and integrate different aspects of an experience into one coherent episode. In a previous working-memory study, we showed that the MTL was more active in a condition that required the association of a number and its location on the screen (spatial binding) as compared to associations formed between a number and its colour (non-spatial binding) [9]. This pattern of results has two possible interpretations. Since the MTL is important for spatial associations, one can on the one hand expect this region to be activated more in the extrinsic intra-item binding condition (object/location) than in the intrinsic intra-item (object/colour) and the between-domain inter-item (object/object) conditions. In line with our previous study [9], we do not expect involvement of regions within the medial temporal lobe to mediate the binding of intrinsic intra-item features
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